Texas House bill by Rep. Morales mandates written notice for new commercial bus stops

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Christina Morales seeks to ensure residents near new commercial passenger bus stops receive timely written notice, aiming to improve local awareness of bus service infrastructure changes, according to the Texas Legislature website.

In the House, 53 Democrats and 36 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while 44 Republicans opposed it.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, 11 Democrats and 15 Republicans voted in favor, while five Republicans voted against it.

Christina Morales introduced the bill in the Texas House on Thursday, March 6, during the 89th regular legislative session.

Morales, a Democrat, was elected to the Texas State House in 2019 to represent the state’s 145th House district, replacing previous state representative Carol Alvarado.

According to the Texas Legislature, the bill’s official text was summarized as follows: ‘Relating to requiring owners or operators of commercial passenger bus services to provide certain notifications to residents concerning operations’.

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill mandates that owners or operators of commercial passenger bus services provide written notice to residents living within two miles of new bus stops, terminals, or other installations at least 90 days before operations commence in Texas. This notice must be delivered by mail and include the address or location description of the new site. The bill aims to ensure residents are informed about developments in local bus service infrastructure. The act is set to take effect on September 1, 2025.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. Pat Curry (Republican – District 56).

The bill received its final legislative approval on Thursday, May 29, and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday, June 20.

Bills in Texas go through a multi-step legislative process, including committee review, debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching a final decision. Each session, there are typically thousands of bills introduced, but only a portion successfully navigate the process to become law.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.